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I love Jazz music. From bebop to jazz fusion, ragtime to free jazz, acid jazz to Afro-Cuban jazz. But also reggae, Gypsy and Klezmer music. I enjoy listening to any style of music as long as I find it entertaining, and French band Les Yeux Noirs definitely is. First time I heard of them was in 2002 when they released their album ‘Balamouk‘. If you listen to ‘Yiddishe Mame‘ (Jewish Mother) and ‘Rozinkhes‘ (Raisins) and if you appreciate Gypsy, Klezmer and Eastern European music then you will really love the songs of the album. The good news is Les Yeux Noirs just released their new album: ‘Tiganeasca‘ and it is as good as the previous ones. Again, Gypsy and Yiddish music with Russian and Eastern European melodies but for this album, new musicians joined the group: Julien Herné and Elise Blanchard on bass guitar, Dario Ivkovic on Serbian accordion, Vincent…⇒ READ MORE

I am a big fan of Hello Kitty -now everybody knows about it. It took me some time to accept Hello Kitty cuteness as my interest in the famous Sanrio‘s character only started when I was already an (young) adult. I have never been into dolls, Barbies and other ‘girl things’ but I always had tenderness for Hello Kitty and I even dedicated  her a web page in 1994 which was for years one of the highest ranked websites. Yuko Shimizu is the one who created the little kitty with the hair bow in 1974, and since then Hello Kitty is today more popular then ever. But 17 years ago in France, it was hard to find Hello Kitty products (unlike in Japan or in the United States). There was only one store in Paris and then in the mid-1990′s I had to go on Ebay to buy my bags…⇒ READ MORE

I wish I was talking about Larry David’s TV show, but I am not. A few days ago, China’s President Hu Jintao arrived in Paris for a three-day state visit with billions of dollars in deals thrown in. When it comes to make deals during those difficult economic times, France like many other countries, is ready to look away to ‘peacefully‘ work on a ‘strategic cooperation without limits‘. How much China had to pay for this masquerade (if the contracts are honored, eventually)? $20 billion. Three years ago, I posted about Gaddafi’s visit to France: When Gaddafi met Sarkozy: faked orgasm? and it is like history is repeating again, associated with the same feeling: ‘Colonel Gaddafi must understand that our country is not a doormat on which a leader, terrorist or not, can come and wipe the blood of his crimes off his feet. France should not receive this kiss…⇒ READ MORE